Barry Levinson to Direct CITY OF ANGELS Film Adaptation

Hmmm... wonder if they will keep the b/w vs. color concept .... they will if they have any smarts!

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'Barry brought it to us, and the story of a writer of classic film noir detective stories, with the same actor playing both the writer and detective ... is as great an idea for the screen as it was the for the stage," Shaye said...'

So, are they changing the concept for the screen or was that simply a mistake? I'm not sure I would enjoy seeing the same actor as Stone and Stine. I never got the feeling Stine wanted to be Stone. I just think it would diminish the impact of You're Nothing Without Me, which would be far too literal and just become a cheesy self-duet a la Jekyll and Hyde. What made that number so fun was watching the only two actors who don't appear in both worlds suddenly collide and meet in the middle. The two of them grounded the show and provided a dual axis around which the rest of the cast and characters revolved. Remove one of those actors and double-casting the other would weaken both characters, bringing them to the level of everyone else. I'm not a fan of the idea if that is their intention.

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Mister Matt - I agree 100%.

Does Clive Owen sing?

I'm not sure how I feel about Shaiman "augmenting" the score (I hope it just means incidental music, etc), but I do love this show and always thought it would make a great movie.

I'd love to see Catherine Zeta-Jones as Donna/Oolie and Kristen Bell as Mallory/Avril.

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I REALLY hope you're right about that, Phyllis, because as much s I like Shaiman's work I think he's all wrong for adding to Coleman's score.

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Let's not hold our breaths until any of these projects actually happen, folks.

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Don't say anything about a certain artist because criticizing certain artist will get you banned from a certain site.

I've said enough already.

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YIKES!

Don't anybody let them know Oliver Platt is available!!!!

Love this show too much to even speculate on how much damage could be done to it in the wrong hands....

OY VEY!

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Mister Matt --- totally agree with what you said about the same actor for Stone and Stein. It's cheesy and gimmicky, cheapens the characters, and lessens their relationship, which is key to the story. Even if one is in B&W with dark hair and the other is in color with lighter hair. Not the same actor, please. It will look like Samantha's naughty cousin on Bewitched. Or a very creepy episode of The Patty Duke Show.

I love the idea of Shaiman adapting this score. So few composers out there understand how film musicals work. They need streamlining/truncating and pace, or they sink like a lead balloon. I'm sure he will honor Cy Coleman's work. Just as he has honored other classic composers' songs in a (pretty impressive) catalog of films. And considering his own achievements, I'm surprised that he took the gig. Probably because (just a guess) that he loves the score and the show. It's kinda like John Williams "adapting" someone else's work at this stage of his career. He did that early on before he came into his own. But Shaiman has built a career on variety. He composes original scores and song scores, and he adapts them. So it's not out of character, and I think they're lucky to get him. I'd hate for some novice who "saw a musical once" years ago to drive this bus.

As far as casting, I'm sure they will load it with stars. And why not? That will be the big drawing card at the box office. "Come see the big stars sing in a film noir-ish comedy!"

The first names that come to mind are Sean Penn (Stein) and George Clooney (Stone). Or Pitt and Damon. Or Ewan McGreggor, Clive Owen. Hugh Jackman as Stein, perhaps, but his singing voice is to nasal and grating for "Stone the crooner." They need box office clout, not just Oscar clout. Don't throw Adrian Brody in there just because he has a gold statue. He's not going to get people in to see something like this.

Zeta-Jones would be terrific, but she'd probably want to play both Stone and Stein or have all the female roles combined into one character so her part ended up bigger. She really needs to get off that clueless, career-oriented, self-absorbed mindset if she ever wants to be cast in anything A-list again.

I'm sure they'll round up the usual suspects, pun intended, for screen tests (Kidman, Zellweger, Hathaway, Hudson, Blanchett, and hopefully a few ladies of color, please, even if they're usual suspects, the Dreamgirls (Beyonce, Hudson, Rose) and Latifah. Maybe even Jennifer Lopez, and a few other Latin or Asian ladies. And a few "new kids" ala Fergie in Nine.

And I'm sure it they will honor and play up on the film look of the '40s, not only B&W, but hopefully scratches, dust, grain, bloom, etc. Really get the right film look.

But the fun (hopefully) for movie audiences here would be watching "Singing With the Stars" at their local cinema.

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Updated On: 6/17/09 at 03:36 PM

If it is done right, this is a movie I could get behind 100%. I always thought it had everything to make a wonderful film. But, I agree - two different actors for Stine and Stone. Even if Stone is an extension of Stein (I could argue for/against that) he is definitely different. He's not Stine - he's Stine's creation, an image perhaps of what he wishes he had, but NOT him. Their duet would definitely look like a crappy acting stunt if played by the same actor.

I love the idea of Catherine Zeta-Jones in this...but I wonder if the role would be large enough for her (I think each female role has much to play with, but screen time, of course varies).

He may not be not old enough and not big enough of a name at all, but I kinda like the idea of Neil Patrick Harris as Stine for some reason...perhaps I can hope for that in a revival (which I would also adore).

Can George Clooney carry a tune? He would probably make a kick-ass Stone. Ewan McGreggor, also suggested, would work well.